JINAN, July 31 (Xinhua) -- Alibaba has signed an agreement to help east China's Shandong Province grow cross-border e-commerce, market farm produce and develop cloud computing, the provincial government said on Friday.

One Touch, an Alibaba affiliate providing import and export services including clearance, logistics, foreign exchange, rebates and finance, also opened its Shandong branch on Thursday.

Wei Qiang, a manager in charge of Alibaba's foreign trade service sector, said One Touch could help boost Shandong's exports by 20 to 30 percent if most local exporters used its services.

Shandong saw its exports and imports decline 16.9 percent in the first half of 2015, dragging on its economy.

The Chinese government is encouraging development of e-commerce, with Alibaba and its rivals capitalizing by opening depots across the country and signing regional contracts for online sales of farm produce.